title: Humor as aggression: effects of motivation on hostility expressed in humor appreciation.
abstract: In 4 studies, the authors examined the hypothesis that relative to primed autonomy motivation, primed control would increase enjoyment of hostile (compared with nonhostile) humor as assessed by self-reported enjoyment and aversiveness and by nonverbal behavior. Results confirmed the hypothesis. Furthermore, initial state hostility moderated the effect such that high-hostility participants who were primed with control motivation especially enjoyed hostile humor. The 2 final studies showed that the effect was mediated by implicit aggression such that the combination of high initial state hostility and control priming led to implicit aggression, which in turn resulted in hostile humor enjoyment. Results are interpreted in terms of the effects of autonomy versus control motivation on intrapersonal self-regulatory processes, which influence interpersonal functioning.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Essex, Colchester, United Kingdom. netta@essex.ac.uk
authors.forename: Netta
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Weinstein
authors.forename: Holley S
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Hodgins
authors.forename: Elin
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Ostvik-White
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000374:Aggression / Q000523:psychology*; D002755:Choice Behavior; D003674:Defense Mechanisms; D005260:Female; D006791:Hostility; D006801:Humans; D007389:Internal-External Control; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D009042:Motivation; D009633:Nonverbal Communication; D012649:Self Concept; D012919:Social Behavior; D012928:Social Desirability; D014925:Wit and Humor as Topic / Q000523:psychology*; D055815:Young Adult